The Convergence of the Twain
Thomas Hardy (1912)
(Lines on the loss of the
"Titanic")
I
In a
solitude of the sea
Deep from human vanity,
And the Pride of Life that planned her, stilly couches she.
Deep from human vanity,
And the Pride of Life that planned her, stilly couches she.
II
Steel chambers,
late the pyres
Of her salamandrine fires,
Cold currents thrid, and turn to rhythmic tidal lyres.
Of her salamandrine fires,
Cold currents thrid, and turn to rhythmic tidal lyres.
III
Over the
mirrors meant
To glass the opulent
The sea-worm crawls -- grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent.
To glass the opulent
The sea-worm crawls -- grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent.
IV
Jewels in
joy designed
To ravish the sensuous mind
Lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind.
To ravish the sensuous mind
Lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind.
V
Dim
moon-eyed fishes near
Gaze at the gilded gear
And query: "What does this vaingloriousness down here?". . .
Gaze at the gilded gear
And query: "What does this vaingloriousness down here?". . .
VI
Well: while
was fashioning
This creature of cleaving wing,
The Immanent Will that stirs and urges everything
This creature of cleaving wing,
The Immanent Will that stirs and urges everything
VII
Prepared a
sinister mate
For her -- so gaily great --
A Shape of Ice, for the time fat and dissociate.
For her -- so gaily great --
A Shape of Ice, for the time fat and dissociate.
VIII
And as the
smart ship grew
In stature, grace, and hue
In shadowy silent distance grew the Iceberg too.
In stature, grace, and hue
In shadowy silent distance grew the Iceberg too.
IX
Alien they
seemed to be:
No mortal eye could see
The intimate welding of their later history.
No mortal eye could see
The intimate welding of their later history.
X
Or sign
that they were bent
By paths coincident
On being anon twin halves of one August event,
By paths coincident
On being anon twin halves of one August event,
XI
Till the
Spinner of the Years
Said "Now!" And each one hears,
And consummation comes, and jars two hemispheres.
Said "Now!" And each one hears,
And consummation comes, and jars two hemispheres.
Titanic
Who does not love the Titanic?
If they sold passage
tomorrow for that same crossing,
who would not buy?
To go down...We all go
down, mostly
alone. But with crowds
of people, friends, servants,
well fed, with music,
with lights!Ah!
And the world, shocked,
mourns, as it ought to do
and almost never does.
There will be the books and movies
to remind our
grandchildren who we were
and how we died, and
give them a good cry.
Not so bad, after all.
The cold
water is anesthetic and
very quick.
The cries on all sides
must be a comfort.
We all go: only a few,
first class.
Understanding
Poetry
"Titanic" by David Slavitt
a)
What
diction in the poem particularly build’s the speaker’s tone?
b)
The
poem seems to have a deliberate absence of sound devices and figurative language?
How does this help contribute to the speaker’s message?
"Convergence of the Twain" by Thomas Hardy
a)
Look
up meanings for these: pyre, salamandrine, third, opulent, cleaving wing, consummation.
b)
What
diction in the poem particularly build’s the speaker’s tone?
c)
What
is that tone?
d)
What
sound devices are used? Have you detected a pattern in how they are used? Describe that pattern.
e)
The
poem does not feature onomatopoeia. Why
do you think the poet passed on this particular sound device?
f)
How
many times is the idea of vanity mentioned? Fate? Are those connected?
g)
In
the sixth stanza, the poem says, “Well, while was fashioning this creature,”
intentionally leaving out the creator of the creature. Yet, in the next stanza, the “Spinner of the Years”
is identified as the creator of the ice berg.
Why is this exception made?
h)
Write
a statement of theme for each poem.
